Frontiers in Climate Systems Engineering

Climate systems engineering — consisting of open-systems carbon removal, sunlight reflection, and interventions to slow glacial melting — is increasingly part of the global debate about how societies could reduce the risks of climate change, alongside efforts to rapidly reduce carbon emissions. While these approaches vary in maturity, uncertainty, and policy implications, together they represent an urgent, growing frontier in climate science and policy.

This gathering will bring together leading researchers, policymakers, and other stakeholders to discuss and explore cutting-edge approaches for addressing climate change. Attendees will engage with expert perspectives on the potential benefits and risks associated with these emerging technologies.

Dates and times:

Monday, May 18, 2026 
Program: 1:00 pm – 4:30 pm CT
Networking Reception: 4:30 pm – 5:30 pm CT

Tuesday, May 19, 2026
Networking Breakfast: 8:30 am – 9:30 am CT
Program: 9:30 am – 1:00 pm CT

Agenda for Monday, May 18, 2026:

1:00 – 1:05 pm: Opening Remarks 

1:05 – 1:10 pm: CSEi Overview, David Keith, Founding Faculty Director, CSEi, University of Chicago

1:25 – 2:15 pm: State of the Field
Overview of the state of the science and technology in CSEi’s core research areas: open-systems carbon removal (CDR), sunlight reflection methods (SRM), and glacial interventions.

• CDR
  • B. B. Cael, Assistant Professor, Department of the Geophysical Sciences, University of Chicago
  • Hannah Bebbington, Head of Deployment, Frontier
• SRM
  • Mingyi Wang, Assistant Professor, Department of the Geophysical Sciences, University of Chicago
  • Ken Caldeira, Senior Scientist, Gates Ventures
• Glacial interventions
  • Doug MacAyeal, Professor, Emeritus, Department of the Geophysical Sciences, University of Chicago
  • Marianne Hagen, Former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway and Co-Lead of the Seabed Curtain Project

2:20 – 3:10 pm: Policy Perspectives Panel
Discussion about the policy and politics of climate engineering. 

• Manish Bapna, President and CEO, Natural Resources Defense Council  
• Hina Khar, Former Foreign Minister of Pakistan 
• Pascal Lamy, Chair of the Climate Overshoot Commission, Former WTO Director-General and Vice-President of the Paris Peace Forum
• Justus Lehtisaari, Head of International Cooperation, Operaatio Arktis 
• Moderator: Michael Greenstone, Faculty Director, Institute for Climate and Sustainable Growth, University of Chicago

3:30 – 4:20 pm: Viewpoints
Discussions showcasing divergent viewpoints, moderated by David Wallace-Wells, science writer and essayist for The New York Times. 

• Session 1: Private and Nonprofit Approaches to SRM Research
  How Private companies and nonprofit organizations approach the technology and policy of sunlight reflection.
  • Dakota Gruener, CEO and Co-Founder, Reflective
  • Yanai Yedvab, CEO and Co-Founder, Stardust
• Session 2: Political Fault Lines in Climate Systems Engineering
  How values, evidence, and shifting political alliances shape the future of sunlight reflection.
  • Sarah Hunt, CEO and President, Joseph Rainey Center for Public Policy
    
  • Ricken Patel, Founder and CEO, Avaaz

4:25 – 4:30 pm: Closing Remarks, David Keith

4:30 – 5:30 pm: Networking Reception

Agenda for Tuesday, May 19, 2026:

Day 2 features in-depth sessions led by experts on climate engineering topics, geared toward professionals and researchers working in the field.

8:30 – 9:30 am: Networking Breakfast

9:30 – 10:45 am: CSEi Research Symposium
Interactive sessions led by UChicago Climate System Engineering researchers will foster discussion on emerging findings.

11:00 – 12:00 pm: Carbon Removal Efficacy of Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement: Scientific Constraints on What Works in the Real World
This expert-led discussion will examine the factors that determine how much carbon removal can be achieved by different methods of ocean alkalinity enhancement.

• Alicia Karspeck, Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer, [C]Worthy
• Anna Michel, Associate Scientist, Department of Applied Ocean Physics and Engineering, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
• Noah Planavsky, Professor, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Yale University

12:00 – 1:00 pm: Sunlight Reflection Deployment Technologies
This expert-led discussion will examine the aircraft platforms relevant to sunlight reflection, highlighting current capabilities and remaining technological constraints.

• John Langford, Chairman and CEO, Electra.aero
• Doug McMartin, Associate Professor, Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University

1:00 – 1:05 pm: Closing Remarks

Speakers